1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to model calves to be used for practicing tying for rodeo calf roping and goat tying events.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The calf roping competition is one of the top events in modern rodeo, including amateur rodeo and professional rodeo. In the calf roping event, the contestant is initially seated upon his horse behind a starting line. A calf, typically weighing from 200 to 300 pounds, is let out of the chute, and runs toward the other end of the arena. As soon as the calf emerges from the chute, the contestant chases the calf on his horse, and attempts to rope the calf as quickly as possible. The horse is trained to move backward at this point and keep the lariat, which is hooked to the saddle horn, taut. Meanwhile, the contestant leaps off the horse runs toward the calf, and "flanks" or throws the calf to the ground. The contestant then "scoops" the hind legs of the calf and crosses them over its foreleg, and utilizes a "piggin' rope" to tie three of the legs of the calf together. The contestant then throws his arms up or out when he is finished. If the calf does not manage to kick loose from the calf-tying knot, the contestant' s time is recorded. The object, of course, is to perform the entire operation in the minimum amount of time. Competition is extremely intense in all rodeo events, since contestants ordinarily pay a large entry fee for each event, and only the winner collects a prize. Each year the top professional cowboys in the United States win a great deal of prize money. Numerous amateurs all over the western part of the United States also complete in various rodeo events, mainly for the sport of it.
A great deal of both practice and athletic ability are required to develop sufficient skill to be a winner in either amateur or professional rodeo events; this is especially true in the calf roping event. The various phases of the calf tying event require months and years of continual practice, not to mention the requirement of well trained roping horses, to become competitive. For a rodeo in which world class contestants complete in the calf roping event, event times in the range from sixteen to twelve seconds are fairly common. Times under twelve seconds have a good chance of winning. Of the ten to twelve seconds required for the entire event, the "stepping across" and "tying" phases take only approximately two and a half to three seconds. Since the tying of three legs of the calf in a secure knot is a very complex procedure, a great deal of practice is required. For example, a typical fourteen year old boy who practices six hours a week for six months might be expected to decrease the average time required to tie a calf from approximately forty seconds to approximately twenty seconds. Much more time is spent in practice to get down to the times of less than five seconds required to enable a contestant to win in most amateur rodeos. A similar rodeo event, called the goat-roping event, is designed for girls. The techniques for developing skill in the typing operation of the goat tying event are essentially the same as for the calf tying event.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a device which aids rodeo competitors to increase their skill in the flanking, stepping over, scooping, and tying aspects of the calf-roping rodeo event.
The complexity of the calf roping event and the tying phase of that event is expertly set forth in "Calf Roping," by Toots Mansfield (Seven Time World Calf Roping Champion), 1961, Western Horseman, Inc., Colorado Springs, Colo.
Practicing the typing phase of the calf roping event and goat tying event is usually obtained utilizing live calves or goats. However, this is very expensive and is also inhumane to the calves or goats. Since the calf must be "flanked" (i.e., grasped by the hide around his flank, lifted, and thrown onto his side on the ground) each time the knot is tied, practicing for the event is hard on the calf, to say the least. Internal injuries and even death can be caused if the same calf is used a large number of times in a short period of time. Ordinarily, a calf should not be flanked more than four times in one day, and should not be forced to lie on its side for more than a few minutes each day. To solve the problem of inhumane treatment of rodeo stock, various motorized roping steers and other apparatus have been invented for practicing the roping phases of various rodeo events. The state of the art in this area is generally indicated by U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,324,832; 3,406,969; 3,711,098; 3,776,553; 3,802,706; 3,947,033; 3,974,799; and 3,962,995. However, none of the devices described in the above patents is useful for practicing the flanking and tying phases of the calf roping or goat tying events.
It is therefore another object of the invention to avoid the necessity of using live animals for practicing the flanking and tying operations for calf roping and goat tying rodeo events.
I have seen one prior device constructed of two wooden boxes bolted end to end, and having three wooden legs, formed from "2.times.4's" hingably connected to the opposed ends of the wooden box-like body. As the three legs of the model are scooped and crossed over the foreleg in preparation for tying, a spring assembly mounted at the connecting point of each leg resists the movement of the legs. Each spring arrangement includes a shaft mounted on an inside corner of the box and extending through a hole in the 2.times.4 leg. A coil spring disposed around the portion of the shaft extending beyond the hole in a leg is retained on the shaft by means of a nut or bolt head. The springs are compressed as the legs are bent inward toward the other legs. However, this calf roping model has been found to be quite unsuited to the type of practice necessary to enable a contestant to bring his tying time down to the five second and less range. Those familiar with the techniques which must be developed to become proficient in calf tying will realize that any practice dummy should be as much like a live calf as possible so that the hours of practice are not spent in learning incorrect techniques to compensate for unnatural reactions produced by a practice dummy. Once such incorrect techniques are learned, they would prevent the contestant from proficient tying of live calves during actual competition.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a calf-tying practice dummy which simulates resistance to having its hind legs scooped, crossed over its foreleg, and tied together similarly to a live calf to permit a contestant to practice to become proficient in calf roping or goat tying rodeo competition.
The above-mentioned wooden practice dummy has numerous shortcomings which make it unsuitable for practicing calf-tying knots and for practicing flanking. These disadvantages can be best understood after some of the basic techniques involved in calf-tying are explained.
As explained in chapter nine in the above book entitled "Calf-Roping," there are approximately sixteen separate steps which must be properly performed after the contestant has the calf lying on the ground and has stepped across the calf to assume a proper position over the calf. First, a loop in the piggin' string is placed over the calf's foreleg above the fetlock joint and is tightened. The calf's hind legs are then "scooped" up and forward and crossed over the foreleg, which is held with the contestant's left hand. The piggin' string is grasped with the contestant's right hand, and is very rapidly wrapped twice around all three legs; the piggin' string is allowed to slip through the contestant's right hand as the wrap progresses. The two wrapping operations are done at very high speed and in such a manner that the outer edge of the right hand controls the twirl of excess piggin' string to avoid snagging and fouling of the wrapping operation. The velocity of the free end of the piggin' string is so great that is causes a hissing sound, and could cause injury to either the contestant or a bystander if struck by the free end during the wrapping operation. A third wrap is then made at the same time that the contestant releases the calf's foreleg with his left hand. The contestant moves his left hand over the knot being tied, so that in the course of the third wrap, the piggin' string is looped over the thumb of the left hand, as indicated in FIG. 6 of the drawings herein. As the piggin' string is looped under the calf's two rear legs during completion of the final wrap, the piggin' string is brought up between the two rear legs and the foreleg, and is grasped by the fingers of the left hand. The piggin' string is then released by the right hand and jerked through the loop formed by the third wrap over the left thumb of the contestant, and is pulled tight by the contestant's left hand to form a half hitch knot, as shown in FIG. 7 of the drawings herein.
In order to become a winner in the calf roping event, the contestant must practice until he is able to perform the foregoing scooping, wrapping and tying operations in a total time of approximately three seconds. It should be born in mind that the piggin' string is approximately six feet long, and a great deal of practice and skill is required in order to cross the legs of the calf and manipulate the six foot piggin' string to provide a secure calf-tying knot which the calf cannot kick free of.
The above described wooden calf-tying dummy had been found to be completely unsuitable for practicing the complex calf-tying operation. One problem is that in the course of making the high speed wraps, the contestant hits his hands, especially his knuckles on the wooden legs, bruising, cuttin, and getting wooden splinters in his hands and knuckles.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a calf-tying practice dummy which prevents a contestant from bruising or injuring his hands as he practices.
Another problem with the wooden dummy is that its "back" doesn't bend or flex, since the body is formed of a pair of wooden boxes rigidly bolted together. The back of a live calf arches or bends as the rear legs are scooped forward and the foreleg is brought back and crossed under the rear legs. The manner in which the spring loaded wooden legs of the prior wooden dummy swing forward and are crossed is completely un-natural. Consequently, a contestant will learn improper techniques by continued practice on such a dummy. Another problem with the wooden calf-tying dummy is that its foreleg and rear leg members only swivel laterally, but do not freely swivel transversely. The legs of a live calf, when it is lying on the ground on its side, are quite limber, and swivel both laterally from back to front and also transversely, so that the rear legs can be scooped up and lifted forward and crossed over the foreleg without lifting much of the body weight of the calf. The prior wooden calf tying dummy requires that a substantial portion of the weight of the wooden body be lifted in order to perform the above operation. The lack of transverse swivelability of the legs makes the required crossing of the hind legs and foreleg very awkward and un-natural. This phase of the calf-tying operation can not therefore be adequately practiced using the prior wooden dummy.
It is another object of the invention to provide a calf tying practice dummy having legs which swivel freely in the transverse direction to permit the scooping and crossing of the hind legs over the foreleg without lifting a significant portion of the body weight of the practice dummy.
Another shortcoming of the prior wooden dummy is that it is totally unsatisfactory for practicing flanking of the calf. Its structural rigidity would cause it to gradually weaken and break up if repetitively grasped and thrown to the ground. The wooden edge of the box-like body is not suitable for practicing to achieve proficiency in grasping the flexible, fur covered flank of a live calf.
It is therefore another object of the invention to make a calf roping practice dummy suitable for practicing the flanking protion of the calf roping rodeo event.
Those skilled in the rodeo art know that the long hours of practice which are required to gain consistency can result in acquiring of firmly ingrained incorrect techniques as well as correct techniques. The prior wooden practice dummy is totally unsuitable for developing the combination of proper techniques needed to become proficient in the calf-tying operation, and results in learning of improper techniques. Consequently, only one of the above-described wooden practice dummys has been built. There is an unmet need for an improved calf-tying practice dummy which permits a contestant to effectively and properly practice the wrapping and tying operations for the calf-roping and goat-tying rodeo events.
It is therefore another object of the invention to provide an inexpensive, portable, durable practice dummy for practicing for the calf-roping and goat-tying rodeo events.